A new logo, a new website, and on Friday, Sept. 6, maybe some new friends.

For this month's First Friday art event, Laboratory will be reintroducing itself to the Spokane community with an open house. The open house will tour the residents' art studio and apartments, including some interactive artwork, art talks, and live music from Katie Fisher.
The open house event will be at the Richmond Art Collective, 228 W. Sprague, at 7 pm.

"I think it’s going to be really good time," Skinner says. "We're just going to talk about what we do, what we plan on doing, have some wine and some great music and some great artists to talk to."

Since landing the job as Laboratory's first-ever full-time director, Skinner, 27, says the artist residency program has benefited from having "more hands on deck" than ever now.

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"Not only is this a paid position," Skinner says of her new job, "also, I have more help than the previous director did."

Herself and Laboratory intern Lily Seitz have both been working to rebrand the organization, as well as getting the word out more, through flyering and social media, she says.

The two are also actively working on organizing a Halloween-themed fundraiser, dubbed "Spookane," slated for Nov. 1.

Details on the event are still forthcoming, but Skinner says one resident is building an interactive haunted house. Another is working on a “gum ball machine with kinetic ooze that will react when you put a quarter in it," she says.

Skinner adds that she and Seitz are looking into some potential gallery space for Laboratory, pending an ambitious grant application from the Andy Warhol Foundation.

Also!

Skinner says Laboratory will be partnering with Spokane CREATE! to help keep the free makerspace open for longer hours throughout the week. (The makerspace, located at 213 E. Ermina Ave., is currently only open on Wednesday evenings.)

"It's really important to us to help them with that mission because it also benefits our residents as well," Skinner says.